With 44 trials scheduled for March and 186 already on the docket for the remainder of 2024, the Shawano County Clerk of Court office is a busy place.
In addition to managing all those cases — as well as maintaining judgment and lien dockets, collecting and enforcing fines and restitution and maintaining lists of certified jurors — the staff also handles passport applications and photos.
“We have been extremely busy with passports,” said Ethan Schmidt, clerk of courts, when addressing the Shawano County Public Safety Committee on March 6. “The month of February, we processed 94 passport applications and 91 photos.”
The office does not process passport renewals, as people must file that paperwork with another agency. However, the clerk of court office staff does assist residents in completing that paperwork, if asked.
As the COVID-19 pandemic drew to a close, 2023 proved to be a banner year for travel. Americans traveled in droves, checking domestic and international destinations off their bucket lists in unprecedented numbers.
The coming year is projected to bring more of the same, according to AAA Travel.
Applications are accepted at the clerk of court office between 8 a.m. and 3 p.m. Monday through Friday, with the exception of holidays.
Schmidt said many people don’t realize they can have their passport photos taken at the office as well as filing their paperwork. In January, he said the office actually processed more photos than passports as people would stop in to renew a passport only to find out the office cannot perform that service. However, as long as they are there, many opted to have their photos taken then.
“They come in, because they see that we do passports, and then they have questions, and we end up assisting them,” Schmidt said. “Some are quite a bit we help with; some are very minimal. It’s still a service that we feel we should provide when they have questions.”
Per U.S. State Department guidelines, the office charges a processing fee of $35 per passport. The price for photos is $16.99, but that is subject to change.
“About every quarter, I check to see what Walmart and Walgreen’s are charging (for photos),” Schmidt said. “2021 was the first year we started doing passport photos in our office. Part of the reason was it made it a one-stop shop, but because of the turnover at Walgreen’s and Walmart, sometimes we look at the photo and we were sending them back to have the photo redone, because it wasn’t up to standards.”
In those cases, residents can return to the store and have the photo redone for free, or get a refund from the store and pay the clerk of court office to take the photo.
The current processing time for passports is eight to 11 weeks from the time the passport agency receives the application. Expedited passport processing is about five to seven weeks from the time the passport agency receives the application, with additional fees.
“Fridays are our busy day. Last Friday, we did 14 in one day,” Schmidt said. “The Friday before that was 17 passports in one day.”
Schmidt estimated his staff spends about 10 minutes for per passport visit. Of the nine people in the office, five are certified to do passports.
Schmidt also said the passport service is also a good revenue stream for the office.
Based on his figures for February, the office recorded income of $3,290 for passports and $1,546.09 for photos for a total of $4,836.09.
kpasson@newmedia-wi.com
Passports bring steady business to court clerk
